Last nights matchup between Butler and Duke was one of the greatest games I've ever seen. Although Duke won 61-59 the game came down to the very end. Like most people I thought this game was going to be a blowout. Duke's win against West Virginia in the semi-finals was one of the most impressive wins I've seen in the tournament and compare them with the 09 Tarheels and the 07 Florida Gators. The reason Butler was able to hang with Duke was from their defense. I have never seen a more clutch defensive team than the Butler Bulldogs. Every time they absolutely had to get a stop, they did. It happened vs Syracuse, Michigan State, and finally Duke. I thought that Kyle Singler would cancel out Gordon Hayward and Butler would be screwed, but Shelvin Mack and Avery Jukes stepped up. I think that Shelvin Mack is one of the premier guards in college basketball and could start for any Big East squad.
Butler had two chances to win the game last night and they missed both by less than an inch. Imagine what would have happened if Hayward hit that half court shot at the buzzer thanks to the ferocious pick by Matt Howard. That would go down as the greatest game in the history of basketball. Although my blood is carolina blue I was very impressed by Dukes play in the tournament especially Nolan Smith and Brian Zoubek. Zoubek was an absolute force during the tournament and forced the opponents to stay out of the lane.
Overall, Butler deserves to be the second best team in college basketball. Also, keep a lookout for Gordon Hayward in the future because I can see him being an NBA All-Star.
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